Friendship Is Forever
by BittyBoBitty
Summary: What happens after Mikan escapes from Alice Academy? Does she get away safely? Does she see her friends again? Find out here. Spoilers for the later chapters of GA. Don't advise reading if you haven't read chapter 100 onwards
1. Goodbye

"Mother...MOTHER!" As the smoke from the explosion cleared, all Mikan saw was her mother, lying still on the floor. Her eyes teared up almost instantly. She ran over to her mother, pushing those still too traumatized to move aside. She knelt down, putting her hand against her mother's cheek.

"Mother..." She rested her head against Yuka's chest. She could hear the faint sound of footsteps coming from behind her, but she didn't turn around too look. She felt a hand on her shoulder trying to pull her around. When she refused to turn, they held out her hand and put a small stone in her hand. She looked up.

"Natsume..." He let go of the stone and closed her hand.

"Use my healing Alice stone, it might save her." She turned quickly back to her mother and placed both hands against Yuka's chest, inserting the stone. Some colour started to return to Yuka's face. She opened her eyes slowly.

"Mi...kan..." Mikan held her hand.

"I'm here mother." She smiled slightly.

"I'm sorry Mikan...I wish I could have been...a better mother for you...for Sensei..." Mikan felt another person come close next to her. They put their hands over hers. She looked over to Narumi.

"Narumi-sensei..." He didn't hear her; he just stared into Yuka's eyes. She stared back, and raised a hand to the side of his face.

"I'm sorry Naru, but I'll have to leave you behind again." Narumi tightened his grip on their hands.

"I'll never let go Senpai...not again..." She brushed the hair out of his face.

"Naru...please look after Mikan for me..." He looked at her with tear-filled eyes.

"What are you saying Senpai? We'll look after her, together!" She just rocked her head slowly from side to side.

"I'm sorry Naru...Mikan..." Mikan held her mother's hand tight.

"Mother...no, please no..." Then Yuka's grip loosened and she fell limp.

"Mother..." Her tears started gushing over. Her mother was gone, after just getting her back, she was gone again, forever. Mikan let out a scream of agony, then she felt someone pull her into their chest. He was also crying.

"Narumi-sensei, why is she gone! Why did she leave me all alone again!" Naru just held her closer.

"Mikan...listen to me, I know it's sudden, but please do as I say." He knelt in front of her and looked her in the eye.

"Teleport us out of here, Yuka too. We need to get you out of here." Mikan's breath caught.

"But Sensei, everyone else..." She looked up at her friends. Imai-senpai, Shiki, JinJin, Tsubasa- senpai, Ruka...Hotaru...Natsume. She threw her head into her hands.

"I can't do it Sensei! I can't leave everyone behind!" She looked up again, noticing that Tsubasa was no longer in the room. She looked around to see a figure leaving in the distance. Natsume noticed too. He ran off after them. Mikan yelled at the top of her voice.

"NATSUME STOP!" Her pained voice stabbed through him like a knife. He froze in his place. Mikan stood and wiped her tears away.

"Why are you chasing Tsubasa-senpai?" Natsume turned his head toward her slowly.

"That isn't shadow. It's the shifter, he's a traitor." Everyone's breath caught. Mikan hung her head, and as he turned to pursue, she whispered.

"Please don't go..." His heart throbbed as her tried to pursue, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Jinno-sensei rested a hand on his shoulder.

"Shiki and I will pursue, stay with your friends, they need you, and you need them." Then they ran after the shifter. Natsume slowly turned to see Mikan's pain filled face. They both knew she needed to leave as soon as possible. They both stared into each other's eyes from across the hall. Footsteps could be heard echoing in the hallways, but nothing would break their gaze. More pursuers gathered from both sides. Hotaru and Ruka, with help from their Alice's, held back the pursuers. Narumi shook Mikan's shoulders.

"Mikan, if we don't leave now, we won't be able to get out." She still stared at him. He lowered his head and almost commanded her.

"Go." Everything around her went quiet. He looked up.

"I promise we'll see each other again. I'll come find you." Ruka and Hotaru were backed up against Natsume. Natsume created a sea of flames between the enemy and themselves.

"Go now!" Narumi picked up Yuka's body and held Mikan's hand. She stared at her friends, fighting to save her. What would happen to them? As she stared, Hotaru turned towards her.

"Mikan, we'll be fine. Go while you still can." The tears started building up again. Hotaru whispered under her breath.

"We'll all come find you, we love you." As the pursuers made their way towards her, she activated her Alice. The scene was becoming fuzzy as they began vanishing. Just as they were teleporting out, Natsume got pushed into them and also began teleporting.

"Ruka! What are you-" He just smiled.

"You need each other. Imai and I will come look for you when all this is done. Goodbye for now." And then they teleported out of the academy's grounds. As they disappeared, the offence of the enemy forces became too much for Hotaru and Ruka, and they were both knocked unconscious and taken to the Elementary School Principal.


	2. Escape!

"Ruka!" Natsume yelled as they landed just outside the academy gates. Narumi had quickly gotten back to his feet and was helping Mikan up.

"Natsume, we have to go. The Elementary School Principal will know we've left the school grounds." He turned back and looked at Naru with a pained look. Naru just stared back.

"It was Ruka's decision, do as he wished and I'm sure he'll be glad. You will see them again." He clenched his hands and looked at the footpath. They could hear the pursuers coming towards their position.

"Natsume, if we don't leave now, they're going to get Mikan." Natsume looked over to her. She was huffing, exhausted from the strain of having to teleport four people. As they went to run, she almost collapsed. Narumi went to help her up again, but Natsume got their first. He slung her arm over his shoulder and supported her.

"Let's go, Naru" He nodded and they began running further into the main streets of Tokyo. They made it to the station and quickly boarded the last train of the night. Natsume rested Mikan against the window gently, while he went to the back of the cart to say farewell to the academy, to his friends and to his old life.

When Mikan woke, Natsume was just coming back into the cabin. She looked over to him, the pain still clearly present on his face. She rubbed her eyes and pushed herself up.

"What's wrong Natsume?" He hid his face under his hair and looked at the floor.

"Nothing." She knew exactly what was wrong, the same thing had her sad too.

"I'm sure Ruka-Pyon is fine, Hotaru too." She smiled and looked at him. He just looked away and took a seat opposite her.

"How..." He looked up at her, eyes fierce.

"How can you act like that at a time like this?" She thought for a second.

"Act like what?" He stood up suddenly, looking down on her.

"How can you smile like that when we just lost our friends, and you just lost your mother!" Her breathe caught in her throat. She slowly tuned her head around to the corner of the cabin furthest from her, and saw Narumi asleep with Yuka in his arms. Mikan looked down at her hands and spoke very softly.

"Natsume...I only act like this, so I can see everyone else smile." She looked up at him, his face seemed to of softened.

"I want to see everyone smiling, especially you." He took a seat and gazed at her.

"When I was first told about you, and when I first met you, you never smiled. After being at the academy for a few months, I noticed that you still hadn't smiled, you always seemed so sad and distant. But I had a feeling it was because you didn't want to. Then that day when you had Yo-chan, I noticed you smiled, even if it was for just a moment, and it made me happy. So since then, I always wanted to make you smile." He just stared at her, shocked at how much she really had done for him. He reached over and pulled her into a hug.

"You shouldn't have to act differently for everyone else's sakes. Just be yourself, everyone can be happy with that. Cry when you want to cry, laugh when you want to laugh, but don't put on fake smiles. If you do, then others won't know the real you." She knew he was talking from experience. She clenched his shirt and buried her face into his chest.

"Why has everything turned out like this Natsume? I miss Hotaru, I miss everyone!" He didn't say anything, just let her get everything that she had been holding in for so long off her chest. His heart hurt, seeing the one he cared about in so much pain. As he looked out the window, the sun was beginning to rise.

"We're almost there." Mikan looked up and saw the mountains.

"Where are we going?" Natsume looked down at her and smiled.

"Home." She looked out the window and looked for anything to help her know where she was.

"Home?" He nodded.

"You'll finally get to see your Grandfather again." Her eyes opened wider, she was going home. She smiled, her face was beaming. Natsume couldn't help but smile a little too. Maybe things could work out, if they all believed. The train was quickly approaching the station. Natsume kicked Narumi in the leg.

"Hey Naru, we're almost there." He kicked him a few more times before Narumi moved. He opened his eyes and looked around the carriage.

"Already?" Natsume nodded. Mikan was sitting on her seat, clearly shining. Narumi smiled and sat up, still holding Yuka close.

"So, Mikan-chan, are you excited to see Grandpa again?" She nodded at an inhumanely fast pace. Narumi just laughed, but then his face fell. He hugged Yuka's body closer to him.

"I'm sure Yuka-senpai would of been happy to see him also..." Mikan put her hand over Naru's and her mothers.

"Mother wouldn't want us to be sad. We have to think of the happiness of everyone else, because that will make mother and everyone around us happy. If we continue being sad about it, no one will ever smile anymore and this situation would seem even worse than it already is." Natsume, who had made his way back to the seat and was staring out the window, sighed under his breath. Narumi looked over to him.

"Something wrong Natsume?" He continued to stare out the window.

"I don't quite agree with that theory. Sure, smiles can make the people around you happy, but you yourself won't feel any better. It may sound selfish, but shouldn't you worry more about yourself than what everyone around you feels?" Mikan had already started shaking her head.

"That is where you're wrong. If the others around you are happy, then you will feel a sense of happiness. Natsume, when you smile, I feel happy. That's why I tried for so long to make you smile. It's not selfish for one to want to be happy, it's selfish for one to keep all the happiness to themselves." Natsume looked over at her. She always seemed to find a way to correct him. Everything that he had every known about life, happiness and friendship, it's all been changed since meeting her. He stared back out the window, a light blush on his cheek.

"Look, we're entering town." Mikan practically leapt over him to look out the window. She was still half sitting on him but she didn't notice. Her eyes were sparkling as she saw the small town where she spent the large majority of her life. As the train passed, she spotted her old school. A smile grew wide on her face.

"It's still there! Hotaru did it!" Both looked at her in confusion. Natsume tried to push her off his lap without hurting her.

"Imai did what?" Mikan finally sat down in her seat.

"When Hotaru left to go to the academy, our school was about to be shut down. With the money the academy offered her parents, she agreed to go, but use the money to save the school. If our school wasn't in danger, she probably would have never left." As the train pulled into the station, Natsume saw how much Mikan admired Hotaru. You could hear it in her voice, they were so close, yet the way they acted could say different things. But the admiration she showed reminded him of Ruka. He held his head in his hands. Mikan immediately got over near him.

"Natsume, what happened? Are you ok?" He just spoke.

"How could I leave him behind..." Mikan's good mood instantly dropped.

"Natsume..." His voice was going crackly, like he was...crying.

"Ruka was always there for me, since the day I met him. Even with what happened to our town, he decided to come to the academy with me so I didn't have to be alone. He did all that for me, and I still left him behind at that place..." The tears were streaming down his face. Neither Mikan nor Narumi had ever seen Natsume act like this. Narumi looked over to the troubled boy, then reached over and patted his head.

"Natsume, sometimes we have to do these things, even though it may seem wrong. We would do anything for the ones we love, but sometimes we have to let them go and do what they decide. You can't always be there for him, and he knows that." Natsume hit away his hand.

"Don't touch me Naru." The train pulled up into the station.

"Let's go." He stood up and walked silently out of the carriage. Mikan looked at Naru with a worriful expression and he just shook his head.

"Just leave him for a little while, he needs time to think." They both got off the train and walked to the end of the platform. Natsume was sitting on the bench nearby. He looked over to them then stood up silently."

"Which way from here?" Mikan jumped up and did a twirl, then she pointed towards a small buch of houses.

"Just over there." She smiled the most brilliant smile, it even made Natsume smile a little.

"Lead the way then. If we stand around much longer, your grandpa will be too old to visit." Mikan's face dropped.

"MY GRANDPA IS NOT OLD!" Natsume just stood there.

"I never said he was, I said he would be." She grabbed his hand and started to pull him along.

"Fine then, let's hurry up then!" She started running, hand in hand with Natsume. The scent of the cherry blossom trees, the sight of the falling flowers, it made her forget her troubles. She felt so light headed, like she was floating . She kept running, trying to go faster, until she stopped outside a small, yet graceful looking house. She dropped his hand and walked up to the door. She knocked lightly and took in a deep breath. The door opened slowly, and an old man peeked his head out.

"Grandpa..." His eyes widened,

"Mikan?" He opened the door wider and stared at her. He reached out to hug her, but to her surprise, he grabbed a newspaper and flung it at her. She jumped out of the way just in time.

"WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" His face was fuming.

"Mikan Sakura, I thought I bought you up to be a good little girl, but instead you go running all around the country side? And without telling me?" Mikan hung her head.

"I'm sorry Grandpa, but I couldn't let Hotaru go by herself." She stood there, waiting for the next wave of his ranting, but instead he pulled her into a hug.

"You had me worried kid. Promise me you won't run off without telling me again." She buried her head in his shoulder and hugged him back.

"I promise Grandpa. I'm sorry." They stood there for a while, until Naru cleared his throat.

"Nice to see you again sir." He looked up at Naru, then down at his hands.

"Mikan's teacher, that woman..." Narumi shook his head.

"I'm afraid she can't be saved." Grandpa put Mikan's hands beside her and walked over to look at Yuka.

"This young woman entrusted me with her daughter many years ago. She said they were hiding from someone. May I ask if you know anything about this?" Narumi stared at the man.

"Perhaps we should go sit down inside, it's quite a long story." He nodded his head.

"We can lay her on Mikan's bed for now, may I ask her name?" Naru smiled slightly.

"Her name is Azumi Yuka." He nodded and lead them in. Naru laid Yuka on the bed gently, then brushed a strand of hair out of her face. Grandpa looked at her.

"The poor girl, she seemed so innocent. May I ask what happened to her?" Narumi looked over at Mikan and Natsume.

"Why don't you two stay in here and say goodbye to Senpai while I fill Grandpa in?" They both knew what had happened, and the story behind it, so they agreed. Grandpa patted Mikan's head.

"I can tell you've been through a lot since you left me, so I'll contact the funeral home and we can have a proper farewell for her." Mikan smiled as the tears started to spill again.

"Thank you Grandpa." Then he patted Natsume' head. He had never been shown affection by an elder, let alone someone he'd just met.

"I can tell you've been through a lot too, you can stay here as long as you need." Natsume looked up at the man. His eyes were so kind and gentle. Not like the ones he was used too, hard and uncaring. He turned to leave the room with Naru, when Natsume called him.

"Excuse me sir?" He turned slightly.

"Thank you, and my name is Natsume." He smiled and turned to leave again.

"You may call me Grandpa." Then he left with Naru. When the door closed, Natsume whispered the word to himself again.

"Grandpa..." The thought of having someone he could think of as a friend, that he could trust, just seemed to unrealistic. How much more was his life going to change? He was pulled out of his thoughts when he could hear someone in the room talking. He turned and saw Mikan sitting next to her mother, holding her hand and talking to her.

"...Now Mother, I know we didn't get very long together, but I cherished every moment that we had. I'm sorry things turned out like this, but...but..." She couldn't continue to speak. She rested her head on the bed and began to cry. He walked over and took a seat beside her, lifting her head off the bed and resting it against his chest. She kept crying, and he stroked her hair, trying to calm her down. When she was taking a breath, he began to speak.

"Mikan, try not to cry." She spoke into his shirt.

"But it's sad Natsume. I saw my mother get killed!" He took a deep breath as his memory flashed back to when Noda had taken them to view the past. It felt like something pierced through his heart.

"...So did I..." She stopped sobbing for a moment for a moment, and looked up at him.

"Natsume...I'm sorry...I..." He pulled her close again.

"Just be quiet, for a while. Think of the good things." As they both sat there in silence, neither could think of things that were happy that they did with their parents. They both had such limited time with them. Mikan's sobs were getting louder again, and this time, Natsume couldn't hold his tears in either.


	3. With A Loss, Comes A Gain

The next two days passed without event. Mikan set up a spare bed in her room for Natsume, while Narumi slept in the living area. Yuka was taken to the funeral home to be prepared for the funeral, but that was a very sad day.

"You can't take mummy! I haven't finished saying goodbye!" She ran after the funeral director. Natsume ran up behind her and grabbed her hand.

"Mikan! It's the best thing for Aunty!" She struggled against his grip. She kept struggling, until Narumi came and lifted her up.

"Mikan, it's sad for everyone. Please settle down a little bit." She started hitting his back.

"No, no ,no! Mummy, please come back!" The funeral director came over and patted her head.

"I know this is hard for you little one, but you'll get to see your mother again tomorrow." She settled down a little bit.

"But that'll be the last time, I need more time with her!" Grandpa walked over and covered her eyes.

"Time is something that we will lose. Memories are the things we can keep best. Learn to remember your mother joyfully, and I'm sure then she will rest in peace." He moved his hands away, and she wiped away her tears.

"So if I'm happy, mother will be happy?" He nodded.

"Forever and ever." She hopped out of Naru's arms and wiped her tears.

"Then I'll make it my mission to be happy, for me and mummy." Natsume smiled and put his hand in his pocket.

"I'm sure Aunty will be very pleased." Mikan turned to him.

"You're calling her Aunty?" He closed his eyes.

"She was my mother's best friend, the closest person to her besides my father. I think I can consider her my Aunty." Mikan smiled and ran over to him.

"Then when I meet your Father, he will be Uncle." Natsume's breath caught.

"Ruka used to call him Uncle..." She put her hand up to his face.

"I'm sure everyone is fine, especially Ruka and Hotaru. They are two of the strongest people I have ever met." He smiled a little and brought her hand down into his.

"I hope you're right." Mikan smiled and looked back at him.

"Let's start again." He looked at her with a confused expression.

"What do you mean?" She laughed.

"Let's be happy here. We can go to school, try to live like normal kids." He just chuckled.

"We're far from normal." She stared into the distance.

"Well that can be our little secret. I had Grandpa enrol us into school yesterday, we start tomorrow." He looked over to her.

"And you didn't think to ask me first?" She smiled at him.

"It'll be fine. We need some sort of normality in our lives." He squeezed her hand.

"I guess." Then he looked back at her.

"Isn't Aunties funeral tomorrow?" She nodded.

"It's after school. The dusk is much prettier and more peaceful." He smiled.

"Ok then, we can do this, as long as we're together." She laughed and nodded.

"Let's head inside, Naru went and got you some more clothes." His face dropped.

"I'm not wearing them." She looked at him, puzzled.

"Why?" He looked at her with a very scary face.

"Have you seen what that guy wears? It'll probably have puffy sleeves and pink ribbons." She laughed.

"I'm sure it can't be that bad, and we'll never know until we go see." He sighed a really big sigh, then started walking inside.

"Fine then, let's get this over with." They both walked into the living room, where Narumi was unpacking some bags.

"Ahhh Mikan, Natsume, just in time." Natsume just stood there.

"If you brought anything with frills or ribbons, I will burn you." He just laughed.

"I wouldn't do that. The woman said this is what boys like wearing around here. He held up a few plain shirts and hoodies. He had to admit they weren't too bad.

"Thanks." As Natsume examined the clothes, Naru turned to Mikan.

"So, are you happy to go back to normal school?" She nodded.

"Yes, and with Natsume there, I'm sure it will be even better!" He laughed at her enthusiasm. He was pleased to see them at least a little happy after everything they had been through. A rattle was heard and they both turned around to see Natsume standing in the doorway in a plain white shirt and black shorts. Naru nodded in approval.

"I don't think I did too bad myself." Natsume just took a seat near the table. Mikan made her way over to sit next to him. Grandpa came in and placed their meals on the table.

"Ok everyone, eat up and then off to bed. We all have a big day tomorrow." Natsume began eating, but Mikan just stared at her food. He looked over to her.

"What's wrong?" She continued to stare at her bowl.

"I was just thinking, school is going to be so different, and normal. It's going to be strange, and without everyone there, it just won't feel right." Natsume placed his bowl on the table.

"Mikan, listen to me. This change is for the better. We both know that the academy is and never was a safe place, and when everyone gets out of there, whenever that may be, we will all have better lives away from there." Mikan just continued to stare.

"I guess you're right." She picked up her bowl and began eating. The room was silent, everyone lost in their own thoughts. Naru placed his bowl on the table, stood and bowed towards Grandpa.

"It was a lovely meal, thank you. I'm off to bed now." Everyone (excluding Natsume) wished him a goodnights sleep. Grandpa hurried Mikan and Natsume up and sent them off to bed.

Natsume woke with a fright, nightmares of everything that had happened still haunting him. He sat in his bed silent, staring at the roof. Mikan grumbled in her sleep, causing him to look. She looked so at peace when she was sleeping, not pain evident in her features, just her. He turned back to look at the end of his bed, and noticed that the living room light was on. It had to be 2 in the morning. He got up and opened the door slightly, just enough that he could see and hear what was going on. Narumi and Grandpa were seated in the living room, and they both looked unsettled. He caught on to what they were saying.

"Grandpa-chan, when do you plan on telling Mikan?" He shook his head slowly.

"I cannot bring myself to tell her. I don't need her to worry about me when she has so much more going on." He looked up to Narumi.

"Narumi, may I ask why the academy is after those two children?" Naru took in a breath.

"The principal of the middle school has a goal he wishes to accomplish, but it involves using students and their alice's. He is a greedy man. Mikan's mother once did his work for him, but she rebelled against the academy and tried to save the children. But she was forced to run away, so the academy returned to normal. He is scared that Mikan's alice could cause the same problems for him, and they have already done a sufficient amount of damage to his plan." Grandpa was astounded.

"And Natsume?" Narumi went to speak, but Natsume opened the door.

"Naru." He looked up and then closed his mouth.

"Maybe you should ask Natsume that question." Natsume walked over and took a seat near them.

"It's not something that everyone has to know. It's probably better that you don't." Grandpa could tell that whatever Natsume didn't want to tell anyone was very personal, and he respected that.

"Very well, but Natsume, please know that I will be here for you and Mikan." He nodded.

"Thank you." He got up to go back to bed, but stopped at the door.

"May I ask what you are not telling Mikan?" No one spoke for several moments. Grandpa stood and went to leave the room, but Natsume stopped him.

"I don't want to see her hurt anymore." The look in Natsume's eye showed just how much he meant what he said. Grandpa sighed and looked at Natsume with a pained expression.

"Perhaps we should sit down for this." He lead Natsume back to the table and sat down.

"Natsume, you must not repeat what I am about to tell you to Mikan, not matter how appropriate you feel it is that she knows." He stared at the man, pain still evident in his features.

"I can't promise you, but I'll do my best." Grandpa grimaced.

"Natsume, if you tell her, she will be hurt, and she will worry." He looked down.

"Very well, I won't tell her, for now." He took a deep breath before speaking.

"While Mikan was away, I started to become ill. I have been trying to keep well, but my condition is incurable. It will continue to get worse. I will not die, but I may become bedridden in coming years." The room went quiet. It felt as if a wave of gloom had come across the room. Natsume didn't move, but he spoke quietly.

"She would want to know." Grandpa sighed.

"I just can't bring myself to tell her. She just lost her mother, and from what Narumi has told me, all her friends from Alice. I don't want to make her feel any more pain than she already is." Natsume stood silently and headed back to bed.

"I know what you mean, having to bear the unbearable for the ones you love..." Then he entered the bedroom and sat on his bed again. He laid back and stared at the roof. He whispered to himself.

"Mikan...what did you ever do to deserve all this?" She rolled in her sleep. He observed her for a while. She kept moving and became restless. She was making noises, and they sounded like she was terrified. He knew he shouldn't wake her, but he couldn't bear to watch her anymore. He made his way over to her bedside.

"Mikan, Mikan!" She woke with a scream. She had sweat droplets on her head and was huffing. She looked around for a few seconds before focusing in on Natsume's face. He stared at her blank features.

"Are you ok Mikan?" She just stared.

"Mikan, hello?" She just kept staring. She started to feel his face and shoulders.

"You are real..." She kept her hands on his face, before throwing her arms around his neck.

"Natsume, I was so scared!" He put his arms around her and held her close.

"It's ok, it was just a dream." She kept crying into his shoulder. They stayed like that for almost an hour. Mikan eventually fell asleep in Natsume's arms, still whimpering slightly in her sleep. He brushed her hair out of her face, then laid her back down in her bed. As he went to get up, she grabbed his shirt in her sleep, denying him the will to move.

"Natsume..." He couldn't tell if she was awake or not, but her grip was unbreakable. It had to be almost 3 in the morning, and he was getting extremely drowsy. He laid down next to her and they both slept the rest of the night peacefully.

"Mikan, Mikan." Natsume shook her gently, it was already morning. She opened her eyes slowly, taking a while to adjust to the brightness of the room. He smiled ever so slightly.

"Good morning." She sat up and wiped her eyes, before having several items of clothing thrown at her. She heard the door open. Natsume spoke quickly.

"You'd better hurry up and get ready; we have to leave for school soon." She heard the sound of the door closing, before she removed the clothes and looked over to her clock.

"8:00am! Oh no, I'm late!" She leapt out of bed and tried to do a million things at once. She had her shirt half on while trying to do her hair, while trying to slip her feet into her shoes. Failing to be able to multi-task that well, she tripped and fell with a loud crash, falling onto Natsume's bed.

"Ouch..." She faintly heard the door open. She looked up, covered in half put-on clothes, to see Natsume standing at the door. He smirked, the amuse clear on his features.

"What are you doing?" She tried to tidy herself up, but ended up tangling herself up more. He walked over and helped her put her shirt on straight.

"At this rate we will be late." She got up and adjusted her shoes, before grabbing her bag.

"Ready!" She walked past him and waited at the door. He grabbed his bag an they both walked down the path, only to be met by Narumi. Natsume's mood instantly dropped.

"What do you want?"He smiled and put his hand on Natsume's and Mikan's shoulders. Natsume instantly moved away. Naru was still smiling.

"I'll be escorting you both to school. I have to speak with the principal and organize a few things for you two." Mikan jumped with excitement.

"Yay!" She grabbed his hand and then offered hers to Natsume. He looked at it, then looked up at Naru, who was smiling way too much. He just started walking ahead.

"I'd prefer not to with him around." Her face dropped, but then she smiled.

"That's fine, I understand!" He turned and looked down the road.

"Are we going?" She laughed and began leading Naru down the road. Natsume couldn't help but smile at how happy she was. They all walked down the small road to the school, chatting and laughing, acting as if there wasn't a care in the world. Natsume was a little quieter than usual, but they put it down to having to start again. They soon arrived at the school gates. Natsume and Naru just stared at how small the school was. After being at the academy for so long, they weren't used to how small regular areas were. Mikan on the other hand was over the moon. Her eyes were sparkling as she gazed upon her old but new school.

"Isn't it just beautiful?" She placed her hand on the small wire fence, and moved her hand along it slowly as she walked in. Naru followed in close behind, but Natsume stood outside the gate. He saw Naru and Mikan enter the small office building, still not noticing his absence, but he didn't mind. Gazing upon the peaceful setting of the school, children laughing, playing. They looked so free and careless. As he was still staring he heard someone calling his name. He looked over and saw Mikan waving at him to come in. He smiled slightly and walked toward the building.

"Maybe everything could work out after all." He walked up and met her at the door, bith entering the school building, and walking towards a new start.


End file.
